Thursday, October 13, 2005
Cities are using restaurants as anchors for business districts. Here is a good article that discusses this trend.
The trend represents another dimension of the shift in economic development from recruiting companies to recruiting people. As one city official in Lowell comments: ''Instead of saying, 'How do we get companies to come here?' we're asking, 'How do we get people to live here?' "Read more. (Here's another example, this time from Mississippi. Read more.)
The article refers to a paper written by Harvard Professor Ed Glaeser. You can download that paper here.
(A lesson for New Orleans: instead of investing in gaming, promote even more new, good restaurants.)
posted by Ed Morrison |
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Some Background on EDPro Weblog
The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it.
One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information.
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Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development
As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking.
Background on Ed Morrison
Download some background information on me here.
Using restaurants to anchor business districts
